Leo The Lion

Leo the Lion is a popular finger-play/action song for pre-school children. Children's interest is engaged and sustained through a combination of words with hand/ finger movements.

Similar to other finger-play nursery rhymes, such as, for instance, 'Incy Wincy Spider' or 'This Little Piggy', this little song can be used to introduce children to poetry and new concepts.

The actions involved (like forming a lion's mouth with the hands, then opening and closing the 'mouth' as the lion 'roars', for example) also assist in children's development of skills like following instructions, fine motor coordination, and so on.

Leo the Lion can also be used as an introduction to teaching children about lions, the jungle, etc. After singing the song, teachers could, for example, show children images of real lions, where they live, how they hunt, and so on.

The song can even be used to demonstrate the potential danger of not heeding warnings. The fact that if you do not run away when hearing the lion roar, you may get eaten could, for example, be used to illustrate the need to look both ways before crossing a road to prevent being run over.

In an alternative version of the song, the song lyrics are sung in the first person (I'm Leo. . . ; I am King. . . ; my jaws are. . . ). Which of these versions came first, or who wrote this nursery rhyme is not known.